Welcome to Bimmerfest -- The #1 Online Community for BMW related information! Please enjoy the discussion forums below and share your experiences with the 200,000 current, new and past BMW owners. The forums are broken out by car model and into other special interest sections such as BMW European Delivery and a special forum to voice your questions to the many BMW dealers on the site to assist our members!

Hey everyone lookin for some help in regards to a 540i that I just got..I'm pretty new to the 5 series and need some assistance..2 main issues that I have...I put the car in s2 and it gave me a code on my dash that said trans program see owners manual and it also gave a lil bang when it shifted into gear..thanks for the help look forward to the responses

Ok Kool I'll deff have that done this weekend thanks for help...one question if u can answer it..now when I come to a compete stop and go to take off it feels as if something was holding the car back but let's loose an drives fine..any suggestions?

Thanks I appriciate it..I have another question if u can answer for me..when I come to a complete stop and go to take off it feel like the car is being held and then it goes..car drives fine though..any suggestions?

Thanks I appriciate it..I have another question if u can answer for me..when I come to a complete stop and go to take off it feel like the car is being held and then it goes..car drives fine though..any suggestions?

There's a check ball in the valve body that can fail, effectively engaging reverse gear while the car is in drive. It's very bad for (will ruin) the transmission, and should be addressed quickly if that's the problem.

That said, the limp mode when "trans program" kicks in is 4th gear, so the car will feel like it's bogging when it operates in that condition.

Also, I've occasionally had the torque converter lockup fail to disengage when the car is cold, usually when I'm executing a rolling stop. It doesn't happen often, but I've gotten in the habit of coming to a full stop (no rollers) while the car is cold. So maybe you're experiencing that ... ?

How many miles are on the car? Do you know if the transmission has any service history?

I've used Pennzoil Multivehicle ATF in my car with no problems as well as Amsoil. ATF bottles will state in the fine print whether the fluid is compatible with Shell LA2634, and your're probably OK with any fluid that says it is, but careful car owners may want to go with the official BMW fluid. It's what, $20 a liter? A fluid/filter change will take 7-8 quarts.

Internet lore indicates you'll want to get a BMW factory filter rather than an aftermarket one. It's another $20 or $30, but people have complained that the aftermarket filters have collapsed internally.

When I pulled the transmission pan on my 540i for the first time at 84K miles, I noticed that it had an aftermarket filter, indicating it had already been serviced at least once. It was whining and hunting in and out of 5th at 45 mph. The fluid level was also low. I installed a new filter and the Pennzoil. Checking my work a week later, I noticed leaks at the selector shaft seals and wiring harness plug. I replaced the two seals on the selector shafts and the two o-rings sealing the harness plug. You may want to check there for leaks and do any necessary fixes before you change the fluid.

One thing you can do while you have the pan off is to clean the two speed sensors of any metallic grit. They read the input and output RPM signals in the transmission, and they can send the transmission into "trans program" mode if they misread the signals. They're each held in place by a single bolt, one in the valve body and one farther back along the output shaft.

Regarding that check ball I mentioned earlier -- replacing it will require opening the valve body. If you have to go that route you might as well do a full valve-body rebuild or get a rebuilt unit from a ZF authorized dealer like Eriksson Industries. But the prudent thing to do is probably do the fluid change and see if the tranny starts behaving itself.

Edubz, do yourself a favor and search through all the BMW forums you can for info on the 5hp30 transmission (the transmission in your car). There's a lot of good stuff out there, and it'll give you a full picture of the transmission, it's strengths and weaknesses. I suggest you run a "5hp30" search at Bimmerforums, Bimmerboard, Bimmernut, BMWE34.net, Shogun's BMW site and E38.org. You can probably spend an evening doing the research, but when you're done you'll have a much better chance of keeping your transmission alive.

The 5hp30 tranny was used in 5 and 7-series cars and it's very stout, but the controls (valve body, shifter) can be finicky. Also, BMW marketed the automatic as maintenance-free so a lot of them were neglected, particularly with regard to fluid changes. But yours may still have a lot of life left in it -- I have 230K miles on my car and the transmission is working great. Knock wood!

Yea I'm going to check those othe forums for more info on it..I deff want to learn more about this 5 series..my boy put me on to this forum and I deff gotta say there's good help on here..thanks a lot guys, real talk

You'll need two of each. The harness rings come with the valve body kit, by the way.

Here's a tip for installing the selector shaft seals: Save one of the jumbo straws from a trip to your favorite fast-food emporium. Snip off a couple 1-inch lengths of straw and slit them lengthwise. Fit one inside the other so the slits are in opposite positions, then fit them inside the opening in the seal. Be sure to lubricate the inner lip of the seal with a bit of ATF.

When installing, fit the selector shaft inside the straw assembly and slide the seal into place. Don't slide the seal off of the straw at this point -- let the straw guide the seal into position. You may need a deep-well socket to tap the seal home. Then you can remove the straw segments, secure in the knowledge that you didn't wreck the seal sliding it over the rough surface of the weathered selector shaft.